Whether you are just beginning your tarot journey, or you are expanding on your tarot knowledge, Reflective Tarot is a wonderful practice that you can incorporate into your daily life and into your readings. My name is Steph and I developed Reflective Tarot because I realized really quickly during my own tarot journey that predictions weren’t working for me. It wasn’t because I didn’t trust my intuition or because my predictions were inaccurate. On the contrary, my intuition and predictions were usually pretty accurate. Honestly, I developed it mostly because it wasn’t helpful for me to know all of the possibilities. I would often end up feeling more anxious after a predictive reading than I would before the reading due to all of the possibilities that were presented. I believe that timelines are always changing and free will plays a huge role in this picture. What we do in the present shapes our futures, so that’s why I developed Reflective Tarot. While the tarot can be utilized for prediction (and I respect people who use the tarot in this way), in Reflective Tarot, we view the tarot as a means for self-discovery, growth, and healing, rather than as a tool for discovering what’s to come. With this practice, each card is seen as a ‘whisper of inspiration’ nudging you back to the present moment and also the most authentic version of yourself. Additionally, reversed cards are seen as opportunities to do some shadow work.
There are many readers who choose not to read reversed cards at all. A good amount of tarot readers choose to only look at upright cards, which is 100% valid! You do not have to read reversed cards if you don’t want to. There are some tarot readers who choose to read reversed cards as the opposite of each card’s meaning. It can get kind of negative sometimes, but Biddy Tarot has a beautiful way of reading reversals that you should definitely read about whenever you have a chance. Biddy Tarot’s way of looking at reversed cards as a block heavily influenced this practice. In Mindful Tarot, reversals are seen as an indication of some energy that could be blocked and each reversed card is an invitation to do shadow work in order to help unblock this energy.
Shadow Work
“Shadow Work” is honestly just a buzzword, and it is very likely that you have been doing it without even knowing you are. It’s another way of practicing emotional intelligence or healing. There are many ways of doing shadow work. For example, you can take a look at your triggers and try to get to the bottom of why you feel triggered (try to think of the first time you were triggered this way). You can journal about your triggers or even look up shadow work prompts, and finally you can do talk therapy (or any other kind of therapy that resonates with you). The goal of shadow work is not just to bring these things to the surface, but get to the point of integrating your shadow into your personality. The point of doing shadow work is to get to the point of responding rather than reacting to something that might trigger us. Shadow work is the ongoing process of examining the parts of yourself that you have repressed or rejected. As we grow up, we’re socialized. Our families, society, culture, religion, etc. teach us how to act and behave. But sometimes because of their conditioning and teachings, we lose parts of ourselves that become a part of the shadow. The word “shadow” usually gives a negative connotation and can remind you of darkness or something bad, but that is not always the case. Oftentimes we have gifts and talents that are hiding in our shadows waiting to be brought out into the light. It’s not about letting go of your shadow or dying to your ego. We were given shadows and egos for a reason. Shadow work is not just about accepting those parts of ourselves that we have repressed or rejected, but also integrating them.
Reflective Tarot also incorporates the use of oracle cards, so I think it is important to mention the difference between tarot and oracle cards. A tarot deck usually contains 78 cards and is made up of the major arcana and the minor arcana. I say “usually” because some decks contain only the major arcana (22 cards), and some decks contain more than 78 cards. For example, the star spinner tarot contains 4 versions of “the lovers” card for inclusivity. Tarot decks are typically more structured than oracle decks and contain archetypes that are present in every culture, tradition, and the human experience in general.
Oracle decks, on the other hand, are really interesting and unique because the content of these decks is completely up to each author/creator/artist. These decks usually come with guidebooks that have descriptions about each card, which you can definitely read/utilize. I did this at first and sometimes still do when I need inspiration to get my intuition going. However, I highly suggest using your intuition to read oracle cards. They typically have pictures and words to help you. You can pay attention to your senses, images/words that come to your mind, sensations in your body, and anything else that may come up when you pull these cards (that is all your intuition).
Core Principles of Reflective Tarot
- In “Reflective Tarot,” upright cards are invitations into the present moment and most authentic version of yourself. Reversed cards are opportunities for shadow work, healing, and reflection.
- Timelines are always changing and the future isn’t fixed. What we do in the present moment shapes our futures.
- Therefore, each card is not necessarily a call to action, but a nudge back to the current moment and how to best take care of yourself right now.
- You don’t have to do anything before pulling cards (meditate, purifying yourself, etc.). Come exactly as you are.
- You also don’t have to do anything with the information presented to you during a reading, but it will always be there for you.
- Finally, there is no right or wrong way to read. These principles will most likely change/evolve with time and rules do not apply to this version of reading the tarot.
